Ben Walmsley

Ben Walmsley is Professor of Cultural Engagement in the School of Performance and Cultural Industries at the University of Leeds (UK) and Director of the national Centre for Cultural Value. Prior to his academic career, Ben worked as an arts manager for ten years, most recently as Producer at the National Theatre of Scotland. Since 2014 Ben has been the Academic Director of the Arts Fundraising and Philanthropy programme, which has been an Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation since 2018. Ben is an Expert Advisor for the UK Government’s Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and the Independent Chair of Flux, Rotherham’s Creative People and Places programme. He recently led a national research project investigating the impacts of Covid-19 on the UK’s cultural sector and the implications for policy. Ben has published widely on arts marketing, arts management, cultural policy and leadership, and cultural value. His monograph Audience Engagement in the Performing Arts: A critical analysis was published by Palgrave Macmillan in 2019 and he is co-editor of the recently published Routledge Companion to Audiences and the Performing Arts.